MUD RACING

If there is anything more fun playing around in a muddy field and acting like an 8 year old, then it must definitely be racing in a muddy track. Yes, these are such a thing as mud racing.  And this is not held in a simple, flat racing track splattered with wet earth, but a circuit with varying levels of elevation to match the twist and turns. Meaning, the vehicle of choice will slosh through 3 feet deep of murky muddy water and at some parts go jumping over a mound of earth 5 feet high.

And the vehicle of choice for this kind of race? Something that is a little smaller than a monster truck. Call it a mini monster truck, if you will. Any vehicle with less than 3 feet of ground clearance will definitely and literally get swamped in this event. So even ifs it’s a trusty 4 wheel drives off road vehicle, a few modifications must be done, and this applies even if it’s Hummer.

The engine, suspension system, brakes and everything must be spruced up, and most if not all of the leading manufacturers of aftermarket parts have just the thing for a monster truck. However, a few parts  like HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces, Techart wheels, and  Tein coilovers may be more suitable for tuners with on road vehicles, but a few of these may come in handy for that 4 wheel drive off road vehicle.  Mud racing is not to be confused with a 4 wheel drive off road course where a Range Rover Defender has to work its way through rocks and other obstacles and sometimes even use a winch to complete a certain task. Nope, that isn’t mud racing.

Mud racing is different, and although it is not as popular as other 4 wheel drive off road races, it is rapidly gaining popularity.

MONSTER TRUCK COMPETTION

For one thing, a Monster Truck Competition is unlike any other automotive event on the planet. Secondly, Monster Trucks are not like any other automobile or race car in the known universe.

What are monster trucks? Think of a nice pick up truck, the kind people take to hardware stores to buy lumber and bags of cement. Then add the biggest tires on earth on all four corners. These tires will make those on Caterpillar tractors look like bicycle tires on a three-year old girl’s tricycle. But it does not end there. The suspension system will be spruced up a couple of feet above the ground and the engine will be beefed up to as much horsepower as two Formula 1 racing cars and enough torque to rip an oak tree off the ground.

Name all the performance aftermarket parts and accessories  like ( but  not necessarily including )Brake Kits, HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces Techart wheels, Tein coilovers and anything and everything else on the market that will turn a truck into a monster. Put it all together and the outcome is a monster truck.

Monster truck competitions are more on the line of what is called sports entertainment. Think of the World Wrestling Federation of Trucks. But, these competitions are loads of fun to watch. Monster trucks doing wheelies, or doughnuts by braking about in circles, and everyone’s favorite which is monster trucks running over and crunching cars , campers and motor homes. Since a monster truck can an will run over anything, even a ten foot wall, a safety device has been installed so that if and when the driver loses control the truck will automatically stop. This will prevent people from scampering about like frightened Japanese citizens in a monster movie when the truck runs amuck.

Monster truck competitions are fun to watch, and even kids will enjoy it.  Monster trucks, carnage, destruction together with pop corn and hotdogs all in one roof.

MALLORCA CLASSIC CAR RALLY

Every year, something special takes place in the largest island off the Spanish Coast. In the Island of Mallorca, a classic car rally takes place. Yes, it is the Mallorca Classic Car Rally or Rally Clásico Isla Mallorca. The rally is just like any other rally where drivers and their navigators go from one check point to another in a designated route, but the twist is there is a given average speed limit. Why the speed limit?

Precious classic cars are raced here, not built-for-speed rally cars which will jump over sand dunes in the deserts of Dakar or rampage through the jungle back roads of Indonesia. Breaking these precious automotive antiques warrants a penalty worse than death in automotive circles. And for the final event of the rally, cars are made to set a time on their own cars on the first lap and are given 3 laps to beat that or not go below the time they set on the first lap. Simple? Yes, it is simple as simple can get Fun? Definitely.

Now, if thoughts of Model T Fords come to mind when thinking of classic cars, that is partly correct. A classic car, as far as this event is concerned, is one made before 1980. So a Porsche Turbo made in 1978 qualifies for this event. Also, other cars like Corvettes, Ford Mustangs, Lancia Stratos, or anything else one can get hold of, as long as it was made before 1980 can be entered in this race.

Just as no woman in her right mind would go out without makeup and a nice dress with matching shoes, no racer in his right mind would enter his car in a rally without preparing it properly. Cars can be prepped up and modified for this event so the usual performance parts from known aftermarket manufacturers are used, such as HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces, Techart wheels and Tein coilovers.

The sight of the ocean and the hills and the exotic location of Mallorca make the Mallorca Classic Rally not only an exciting motoring event, but also a memorable one for its participants.

FORMULA D

Officially, it is not a race nor is it sanctioned by the Federation Internationale de Automobile but it’s all about drifting. Yes, drifting as in violently swinging a car sideways to make it slide and look cool with all that tire smoke and making skid marks all over the place. And in the US it’s called Formula D. Explaining and understanding how judges award points or scores to declare a winner is an arcane procedure akin to  making a 2 sentence essay about Quantum Physics and is better left to the 12 year fans of this sport who can explain it better than any one else on this planet . Either way, it’s the coolness of seeing cars sliding about that make Formula D popular. Immensely popular.

It takes a certain degree of racing skill and talent to make a car slide sideways, and the heel and toe maneuvers with brakes, clutch and gas pedal have to be done just right. Do it all wrong, the car will flip over or nothing will happen.

When well known brands and manufacturers of car accessories like HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces, Techart wheels, Tein coilovers as well as a thousand tire brands (tires are wasted like crazy in this sport) and brake kit start endorsing their products and are actually used in this sport, then that is a surefire sign that this is not just another run off the mill automotive event. It means tons of people avidly watch it. And the cars must be loaded with the aforementioned mentioned parts to survive in this race, most specially the brake kits and the tires. By the way, no front wheel drive cars are allowed unless these are converted to rear wheel drive and that convertibles be fitted with roll cages fro safety purposes.

Drifting originated in Japan, and somehow managed to find its way to shore of the US and other parts of the globe. Manga, anime and movies about drifting no doubt fueled interest in this unique sport. Formula D may seem new, but with its popularity, it will no doubt be around for years to come.

A DIFFERENT KIND OF RACING

Since the advent of time, man has always had a certain fascination with speed. Maybe it all started when ancient man and his buddies were running for their lives while being chased by a saber tooth tiger and the fastest one could live to tell about it, while the slower ones would have been the subjects of the sorry tale. Then man started to show off whose horse was faster, then whose chariot was faster until we reach the modern age of man when seeing who gets the around a circuit the fastest with the best car wins.

And modifying racing cars went with it, by loading only the finest parts that money could buy like HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces, Techart wheels, and Tein coilovers. So people not only race cars, bikes, trucks, lawnmowers but lately someone has cooked up something new. Motor home racing.

Yes, a motor home. The kind that is either a truck or bus or minibus that has a kitchen, bed and bath on it which people with their families take to camps and wild life parks on weekends to enjoy a nice, quite evening in the wild. Where on earth would people race their motor homes? Not on a public highway, where even a Fiat Panda can outrun and outgun them. A proper racetrack would be just the place. There are rules and regulations, just like any other recognized and homologated racing event.

The first rule is one night to prep the racing motor home. Then, drive it to the designated racetrack and race a couple of laps. Finally, go home with the motor home in one piece.  Is this race for real? Has anyone actually participated in this race? The answer is yes, on both counts. A fellow by the name of Richard Hammond (yes, one of the Top Gear trio) started it and the contestants were race car drivers in real motor homes, and was witnessed by about half a million people streaming it on YouTube. Will this race catch on? Well, in a world where people race almost about anything, this will definitely make it to the top with F1. Maybe, anyway. But it will definitely catch on.

DETROIT STYLE DRAG RACING

Drag racing is as simple as it gets. 2 cars drive in a start from the same point which we shall call A, and move straightforward to a certain point which we shall call B. The first car which reaches point B first wins. There is a track for doing this sort of race, but all over the world, a stop light at an intersection with two cars set side by side is often an impromptu version of this sort of racing.

And sometimes, cops go after them to issue traffic tickets. Then there is the Detroit style drag race. The cars in these events are real, live, modified cars meant for drag racing. The kind which almost look like funny cars and are raced by the members of the National Hot rod Association of America on a track.  So what is the difference? This race is competed on a street, the kind where cars, school buses and milk trucks pass through everyday for 365 days a year.

In other words, NOT on a race track. No, this is not the kind of drag race which involves boozed-up teenagers and their equally jazzed-up cars with boom boxes. Accountants, orthodontists and respectable middle-aged men participate in this open street event, though some kids do join in once in a while. This strip of road in Detroit has been used by the Big Three to test their cars since the 1950’s, so it is sort of a tradition to race cars here. And the cars used to drag race here?

Just the kind anyone would see at any drag race, loaded to the brim with performance parts for the engine, brakes and suspension system such as  brake kits, HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut brace, Techart wheels,  Tein coilovers and the works. Really serious stuff. Notice that no mention of where this street is ever mentioned here in this article. It’s a secret among the locals, but when it happens at a certain weekend, it’s very easy to spot.

WHAT A CAR SHOULD NOT BE

Although there are varying opinions as to what a good car is, and volumes have been written about it, few things have been written about what a car should not be. For example, a good luxury sedan is one which is comfortable to ride in and exudes an air of prestige, a good sports car is one that is fast and looks cool, and a cool modified or tuned car is one loaded with tons of performance parts for the engine, brakes and suspension systems like brake kits, HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces, Techart wheels, Tein coilovers.

So basically, a good car is one that is pleasant to drive and to ride, will do what the driver wants and will go to where it is suppose to go.  Which brings us to what a car should not be?

A car should not be one that handles so badly, it will turn over when running over a pebble or run around a slalom course and it tips over. If this seems like stating the obvious, there was such a car, a mini all SUV which was so unstable it would tip over and fall when driven in a sharp curve. People actually bought that car.

A car is means of transport and must be affordable to the masses, like the classic Volkswagen Beetle. But what it should not be is that it is so cheap, the parts so unreliable, the workmanship so shoddy and the car so ugly that it should not be offered for sale to the public. But there was such a car built by an eastern European manufacturer two decades ago. Some were sold, and many were wise enough to avoid it. That was definitely not a car, but a tragic mistake.

There are a thousand horror stories of what a car should not be, and automotive history is littered with examples of these piles of junk. It’s rare to see a poorly made car these days, but they still do exists. The bottom line is, know what a good car is in order to avoid buying a lousy one.

VAL THORENS ICE DRIVING CIRCUIT

To many, Val Thorens is all about ski resorts and skiing. In fact, that is the reason why many tourist flock to Val Thorens in the snowy Alps in Europe. But there is actually an ice driving circuit there, and is one of the secrets of Val Thorens. Then came along the  memorable Top Gear episode showing the hosts Jeremy Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond slugging it out on the tracks with old  rear wheel drive vehicles against the likes of French Formula star Olivier Panis on a 4wd hatchback. One does not even have to fancy a guess as to who won, but it was one of the best Top Gear episodes ever.  Now, not only is Val Thorens about skiing, it is also about racing on snow and ice.

Racing on asphalt circuit may seem easy, but it does require a certain amount of driving skill. There are several race tracks open to the public around the world, and wannabe Schumachers frequently crash on the barriers even before they can even complete a single lap on their cars. Driving a car down town is one thing. Racing a car in a circuit is another.

Now, imagine racing on a circuit layered with ice and snow. If Olivier Panis gets a work out driving on an ice circuit, then 99% of people who know how to drive will have to really practice hard to get it right. Forget bringing an old Ford Cortina on an ice racing circuit, because even with snow tires it won’t work. The best weapon here is a 4 wheel drive lightweight hatchback with all the modifications in every inch of the car. Load it with brake kits, HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces ,Techart wheels, Tein coilovers and every other performance part which improve handling, braking, acceleration through the corners  and then the car will be much more adequate for roughing it out in a snow covered track.

Mercifully, the track also serves as an ice driving school, and is perhaps a much better way to get a feel of driving on ice before actually racing on it. So before gunning that brand new Porsche Cayenne on the ice track and putting the pedal to the metal, it is prudent to first learn how to do it right and Val Thorens is just the place for that.

PIMP MY RIDE

Human nature is a funny thing. People want to blend in but at the same time be unique and a little different from everybody else. Sure, everyone drives a Fiat 500 but no one wants to have his or her car looking exactly like the next door neighbor’s Fiat 500. Hence, enter the car modification shops or car tuners which will turn a even a humdrum Suzuki Alto to a sexy screaming street machine. Everyone has seen the MTV show and all it’s variants on cable in other channels, so everyone knows that modifying or tuning is THE thing to do to a car to personalize it.

There are several ways to go about in modifying and personalizing a car. One way is by making it a paper tiger car, a car that is all flash with its wicked air dams, rear air spoilers and fancy paint job but still has the heart and soul of an everyday commuter car. This is the kind of car that attracts attention by mimicking a Lamborghini Countach but is still a homely Toyota Camry at heart.

Then, there’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing kind of modified car. Unsuspecting show offs will taunt it at traffic lights and think they can out run it with their prepped Honda Civics. Tough luck. A car looking plain on the outside but has all the performance parts hidden neatly away under the hood will own almost anything else on the streets, except of course if it’s a Pagani Zonda or a Ferrari Enzo.

These “wolf in a sheep’s clothing” kind of modified cars have all the performance parts imaginable inside, from  brake kits, HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut braces, Techart wheels, Tein coilovers and everything else to make a car zip like a bat out of hell and handle properly. Then finally, there is the ultimate modified car. The street fighter. It looks mean, and goes really fast, and has the audio system not all unlike the ones used in mega rock concerts.

From a simple personalized paint job to a fancy and total overhaul of a car, modifying a car is no different from choosing drapes for the kitchen or buying a new cell phone case to match the color of one’s favorite shirt. In a word, it’s all about personalizing something to be unique and different.

HOT JAPANESE HATCHBACKS

Japanese 3 door hatchback cars are extremely popular in the car market nowadays, and there are several reasons for this. These inexpensive cars are well known for being extremely reliable. The various Japanese brands like Subaru and Toyota occasionally rise triumphant in the World Rally Championships, and the fact that these cars can withstand endurance rallies and win is more than a testament to their reliability.  Often equipped with 1.5 to 2 liter 4 cylinder engines, these cars have very low fuel consumption, but despite that the performance of these pocket rockets are rather decent.

Not a bad thing when driving about in congested city traffic and at the same time having enough zip to blast past SUVs and station wagons at the freeways. But another factor why these hatchbacks are so popular among the younger generation is that these cars can be easily and inexpensively modified or tuned, which is not something that could be easily done with more expensive European coupes and sedans. Modification can take many forms. With regard to appearance, body kits such air dams and spoilers can easily be attached to these cars. Yes, Koennig of Germany does the same thing with Mercedes and Porsche, but these cars are very expensive and modifying these will cost an arm and a leg.

Performance enhancement parts for Japanese hatchbacks can be bought with a relatively modest budget .Engine, suspension ,wheels  and brake kits can be modified by adding aftermarket kits such as those manufactured by HRE rims, K&N Intakes, Kelford camshafts, Larini strut brace, Techart wheels,  Tein coilovers and several other popular aftermarket parts.

And perhaps THE thing to have on any young man’s car is the Boom Box. Yes, those audio systems with subwoofers the size of washbasins. Ever seen a Ferrari or a Lamborghini with a boom box? Perhaps not. The coolness factor of a car, for this generation perhaps, is not only how fast a car goes and how sporty it looks but also how LOUD it sounds with the speakers at full blast. And where is the perfect place to put these speaker systems? At the back of a Japanese hatchback.